It's a Small World After All
by Constance Truggle
Summary: Family and friends all care about their loved ones that lived in Sunnydale when it cratered. First movie only. Day Twelve in August Fic-A-Day Now with Day Eighteen as a second chapter!
1. Small World

**Title:** It's a Small World After All

**Author:** Constance Truggle

**Fandom:** Buffy/The Fast and the Furious

**Rating:** FR13

**Pairing:** Buffy/Dom implied

**Summary:** Family and friends all care about their loved ones that lived in Sunnydale when it cratered. (First movie only.)

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Buffy or The Fast and the Furious.

**Word Count:** 1201

**Author's Note:** I've been on a bit of a Fast and the Furious kick lately, and I blame hellbells for causing this. I'm not sure how I feel about it as it was written with an eighteen month old harrassing me. Sorry if it sucks. Also, **READ ME:** I took Letty out. Don't get me wrong, I love her character. It's _why_ I just removed her from canon, actually. I couldn't come up with a nice way to have her and Buffy in the same fic with the way she felt about Dom. Sorry about that.

* * *

Brian O'Conner watched the news closely, Mia sitting next to him and holding his hand. He was worried, and even Vince wasn't ragging on him too badly just then. Most of the team were watching Brian's reactions rather than find out what enthralled him so. Dom, however, was just as enthralled. Suddenly, the blond stood up, followed swiftly by the bald man.

"Brian?" Mia asked uncertainly. "What's going on?"

"My cousin is there," he said, pointing to the now-deserted town of Sunnydale, CA. But, knowing his cousin, it was _quite_ so deserted. "I've got to get up there." So saying, he made sure he had his wallet and keys and headed for the door, an unnaturally quiet Dom right behind him.

"Dom! What are you doing, man?" Vince asked, grabbing up his keys as well and following the two men. Everyone else came right behind him.

"I got a friend up there," was the curt reply. Vince, Mia, Jesse and Leon exchanged looks before each jumped into a car. Mia with Brian, Jesse with Leon and Vince by himself. He'd tried to get in with Dom, but the man shook his head and took off. After all, his friend and Brian's cousin might need a ride, so two extra seats would be good to have. So four flashy racers headed up the freeway to Sunnydale, never expecting what they would find when they got there.

* * *

"Yeah Buffy, what are we gonna do now?" Dawn asked.

Buffy smiled slightly as she thought of her friend in Los Angeles. At least that city was safe... and still standing. She turned to her family – no matter what, they _were_ family, just in a rough patch – smile growing as she made her decision.

"I'm gonna take some time off, I think. De-stress and maybe visit some friends. You all should, too."

Kennedy just had to ruin her high, though, the spoilt brat. "Sure, leave us to do the clean up then, right?"

It was Xander who stepped in, surprisingly enough. "Lay off, Kennedy. She's been doing this a lot longer than you, and I happen to agree with her. Those of us who've been working to keep the world safe for the rest of you? We _all_ need a break."

"Well, I for one plan to get these girls back to their homes or else into a Council safehouse," Giles said. At Kennedy's victorious look, he continued. "And then I plan to take a much needed respite for a few weeks before tackling anything else."

The brunette's smug superiority fell away, and she turned pleading eyes to her girlfriend. Before she could try to drag Willow into a fight against the redhead's friends, however, Faith suggested they get back on the bus so the injured could get to a hospital and the rest of them could – as she said earlier – sleep for a week. Before anybody had moved, though, a very distinctive sound could be heard. Engines. Not just any engines, either. No, these were _racing_ engines!

Buffy stepped away from the group, trying to get a better view. She saw four cars shimmering across the horizon and she grinned. A very familiar car spun a one-eighty as it stopped, and a bald man jumped out. Buffy was in his arms before the other three cars stopped, and the Sunnydale crew could only stare. They didn't know who these people were, but it seemed that _Buffy_ did.

"Damn, B! Where you been hiding that man?" Faith called, breaking up Buffy and Dom's hug and successfully calling attention from them to the raggedy, bruised and bloody group of survivors. Buffy flashed a grateful smile to her sister-slayer as the man checked her out.

"I'm fine, Dom."

"Then where'd the blood come from?"

"Oh, you know how it– wait. Brian?!" she asked incredulously as she finally caught sight of the blond man behind Dom. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"You know him?" Dom asked suspiciously.

"Uh... yeah. He's my cousin."

The brunette standing with Brian broke down laughing and Buffy looked at Dom.

"That's Mia." Ah. His sister, then. She waved a hand at all those arrayed behind her.

"My friends, and some not-"

Faith cut Buffy off with a sharp whistle. "Intros can wait, yo! We got wounded!"

"Shit. Yeah." Buffy gave Dom one more smile and turned around, her face serious. "Alright people! Load 'em up and let's get going!" she hollered, watching as the girls did just that. She turned at a hand on her arm and nodded as Dom tipped his head towards his own car. Yeah, she'd definitely be riding with him. She heard a few gasps behind her as she walked towards Giles to confer with him for a moment.

"Giles, I'm gonna ride with Dom. I'll meet you at Angel's?"

"Yes, that will be fine, Buffy." He looked her over searchingly, before glaring at the man behind her, not the least intimidated by the menacing aura the younger man put out. He looked at Buffy once more before climbing on the bus and taking over for Robin. Buffy watched them drive off before turning back to Dom, Brian and their friends.

"Buffy, I don't mean to alarm you, but you look like you really need to get checked out," Brian started, causing Vince to snort, Jesse, Leon and Mia to give him incredulous looks and Dom to stare intently at her.

"I'm fine, Brian. It's just a scratch."

"Yeah, a scratch that went all the way through and bled down her leg," Vince grumbled to Leon, who nodded.

"I said it was fine," Buffy said, glaring at the peanut gallery. "But, um.. Do you have an extra shirt, Dom? I _really_ don't want to get blood on your seat," she asked.

Dom looked at her, looked at his car, sighed, then gave her the shirt he was wearing. She was so far beyond caring just then that all she did was turn her back before stripping off her jacket and top and swiftly pulling Dom's too big shirt over her head. She swam in it but grinned at him before turning her attention back to her cousin.

"You will be telling me how you, of all people, got caught up in Dom Toretto's world, Brian."

"Can we go, first? I'll tell you everything later, I promise."

"I'm gonna hold you to that. Now, Dom. Who is everyone?"

Once introductions were done and commiserating female glances were exchanged, four cars took the freeway to Los Angeles. Buffy wondered what she'd tell her friend and his crew about what went down that day, why her mortal wound really was nothing more than a scratch by the time she changed shirts and just why there was a four-man Army team waiting at the Toretto residence when they pulled up, even though the Army shouldn't know she was even _with_ Dom that day. She sighed mentally. She'd figure something out. She always did.


	2. Compromise

**Title:** Compromise

**Author:** Constance Truggle

**Rating:** FR13

**Pairing:** Brian/Mia, Dom/Buffy

**Summary:** Brian didn't want to turn Dom in, so Buffy found a way to get them all out.

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Buffy or the Fast and the Furious.

**Word Count:** 2991

**Author's Note:** This follows my other story, _It's a Small World After All_. **Seriously unkind to Riley.** And a huge thanks to **_hellbells_** for looking this over. And for making me write the confrontation with Riley. Hope it's up to snuff! Also, I struggled to remain within the word count, so some scenes are severely glossed over.

* * *

Buffy's head hurt. Her head hurt like there was a troll using his hammer for a golf club with her head as the ball. And she hadn't even gotten out of the car yet. She could see them, of course. The Finns. Samantha and Riley Finn, she of the Peace Corps and he of the Toothpaste Ad. One of the others looked familiar, too. Gray or Grant or something. Cracker? Graham! That was it. And another guy, this time one she'd never met. She heaved a sigh, pushed open the door, and let Dom pull her out.

"What are you doing here, Riley?" she asked in a very tired voice. "And do I even want to know how you knew where to find me?"

"They're here for you, babe?" Dom asked. Buffy tossed him a brief smile.

"Yeah. All that shit with Sunnydale? They're the ones who think they need to deal with it."

"It's what we do, Buffy. You know that."

"No, Riley. I know that you _think_ it's what you do. And it's cute. Really. But I also know that your people fuck it up all the time."

Riley's wife sneered at her, and Buffy wanted to laugh. Still a bit jealous, then. She could work with that. She wasn't the same slayer they'd last seen. Now she knew what she was, what she could be. She was the top of the fuckin' food chain, and she wasn't going to let these righteous idiots run roughshod over her again. Not this time. So she smiled slightly, tilted her head until it rested on Dom's shoulder. She watched Brian flank her other side, leaning back against Dom's car like he owned it and crossing his arms as he watched the soldiers in front of them. Dom's other friends shifted around them and suddenly there was an Us against Them camaraderie that had the Army boys shifting just a bit. She had to admit that Team Toretto was definitely a rough looking group. Dom didn't say a word, just let Buffy lean on him as he wrapped a muscled arm around her waist.

"If it's what you do, Riley, where the hell were you when it was going down? Where were you when teenage girls were dying for something they couldn't control? Where was your damned team when we went into the Mouth of Hell itself to kick ass so hard that the whole fucking town turned into a crater? Huh? Where the hell was your team? You think that just because you sent some doctors up to remove the chip in Spike's head that your people put there without making sure it wouldn't malfunction that you were done? That we couldn't have used your help? Even your group's bumbling efforts would have been better, because at least your people knew they were likely to die when they signed up for this. These girls didn't. So no, Riley. It's _not_ what you do. It's what _I_ do. It's what _Faith_ does and what Giles and the rest of the Scoobies do. What _you_ do is play at being a monster hunter. You need a team to take down even half of what I do alone in one night. So tell me again, Riley. What, exactly, are you here for?"

"Damn, babe! If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a little angry," Dom drawled, sending his boys into coughing fits as they tried to rein in their laughter.

"Look, _Buffy_," Sam Finn said, drawing Buffy's name out like she tasted something nasty. Buffy's eyes narrowed and she straightened up, moving away from Dom in an angry, predatory way. Riley shook his head at his wife and she closed her mouth with a snap. The guys on Dom's team looked at her with new found respect that such a simple movement from her could get that kind of reaction.

"What. Do. You. Want?" she gritted out, muscles in her cheeks flexing rythmically each time her teeth clenched tighter.

"We just want to debrief you, Buff. That's all. We need to know what happened so we can stop it from happening again."

Buffy laughed, a bitter, twisted sound. "You're almost two years too late, Riley. And if it happens again, I'd better not be alive to see it."

Riley sighed and Graham stepped forward for his turn. He was softer spoken and more respectful, though, so she didn't lash out at him. She glared at Riley and at Sam, and pulled her cell phone out. With the press of a button, her phone was ringing and she shot a vindictive smirk at her ex when the cessation of the ringing let her know the other person had picked up. She spoke before he could.

"Angel, I need some info." Riley jerked and glared back at her when he heard who she'd called.

"You're in charge of Wolfram and Hart now, right?" At his affirmative, she grinned. Ferally. "Can you find out just how much pull the Council has with the US government?" Riley stepped his glare up a notch.

"What is this, Buff? A reunion of the exes?"

Buffy put her phone on speaker at Angel's request. His voice came out loud and clear to the soldier.

"_Watch your mouth, boy. I'll beat your ass again, and I don't have one of those chips your people like putting into guys like me to make it easier for you to torture us. Don't think I don't know what kind of sick things you did, using a plastic stake on William. Does your wife know that you couldn't handle Buffy being stronger than you, so you went to a vamp suckhouse to satisfy your need to be in control?"_

The girl turned to her husband, a look of revulsion on her face. Buffy also looked repulsed, but it was because he would think to even have a plastic stake made and use it on a vamp.

"Wow. I am so ashamed to say that I ever dated you. First, you can't tell when somebody else has my body, then you go to the suckhouse because you're insecure, and then I find out you're sick enough to go and actually get a _plastic stake_ made just because Spike... what? Is it because I found out about the suckhouse? Because he showed me? Or are you just petty enough to do it because you knew he _could_ keep up with me? He was strong enough and had the stamina to be a help to me, not just in the way."

Angel's soft laughter could be heard through the phone, Team Toretto and the other soldiers watching with horrified fascination as Riley and his ex finally faced off.

"_It's great to hear you light into Smiley Riley like that, Buffy, but next time, can you keep Spike's stamina out of it?" _

A wicked grin crossed her face and she almost wished Angel were there to see it. "Back on topic, Mr Big Shot. What kind of pull do I have?"

"_You have the kind of pull that can get the soldier boys to back off. Since it was a Council operation, you only need to answer to the Council. Currently, that's Giles and you."_

"Me?! Are you serious?" Buffy stopped, took a deep breath, then continued. "Alright. Who do I call and what do I say?"

"_I'll give you a number, you just call and tell them that you represent the Council of Watchers, based in London, and you are handling the Sunnydale situation. If they give you a problem, have them call me. Between the Council and Wolfram and Hart, you shouldn't have a problem. Call me when you're done."_

"Alright then. Thanks, Angel." Buffy took the number down and hung up, dialing again right away. Her conversation with the guy who answered went a lot smoother and easier than the one with Riley, and soon enough the soldiers were gone. Only Graham had given her an amused look. He wasn't a stupid one. Maybe the Council could snatch him up. She'd talk to Giles later.

Finally, the entire group was able to get into the house. Mia offered her some clothes that were closer to her size, and Brian offered to run her to get some outfits once she was clean. She jumped at the opportunity for a hot shower. Dom grabbed her arm as she headed to the bathroom and _looked_ at her.

"We gotta talk."

"After I'm clean and done with some retail therapy. Then I'll tell you what you need to know."

* * *

Brian was driving and Buffy kept staring at him. Finally, he pulled over at a burger joint and sighed.

"What is it?"

"You're a cop, Brian. How'd you get mixed up with Dom?"

"It's an undercover job. You can't let them know, Buffy."

"I figured as much, or you would have jumped in with the whole Riley thing. You always were a bit overprotective of me."

"You're my favorite cousin. Of course I want to protect you."

"You're avoiding the question. What's going on with you and being with Dom's gang? If you get Dom into shit..."

"Fuck, Buff. Toretto's hijacking trucks and then selling the goods. He's doing it so he can get his sister out of here, and I think the guy just got a big ol' run of shit luck and he's making the best of it, but it's illegal and he can't keep doing it." Brian ran a hand over his face, rasping against his stubble. He and Buffy had shared a lot over the years. When he became a cop, he learned a bit about the stuff Buffy took out. In fact, they hadn't seen each other since they were kids, then one night when she was around fifteen, he ran into her taking out a couple vampires. They started a long distance communication not long after as she moved to Sunnydale. So he knew what she did. And she knew him too well for him to hide this from her. Especially since it involved a man she was, apparently, involved with. Or planning to be.

"Shit. Alright. Let me think." She was quiet for a few minutes, eating the food he'd grabbed for them when he pulled in. "Okay. If the hijackings stop, then there's no way to prove who was doing it, right? So we get him to stop."

"It's not that simple, Buffy."

"It never is, of course. What about if... hmm.. Oh! I know! I'll have to clear it with Giles first, of course, but what if we say he got the wrong trucks? He never knew what was in them, but he was grabbing some shipments that had been taken from the Council. With some autonomy, we could probably pull that off. And if nothing else, Angel _does_ run Wolfram and Hart."

"We could say that your contacts marked the trucks, but they were the wrong ones. The right ones had demon drivers, so whatever contact the government has that you called wouldn't think twice about it if they thought that Dom was fucking with _demon_ profits."

"Oh, perfect! We'll have to talk to Dom tonight. Come clean to him about you after he gets the Slayer Schpiel. And another thing I'll have to ask Giles, but Dom could work for the Council. It's an adrenaline rush he's after, right? So he can patrol with me. See if it's something he wants in on."

* * *

They talked to Giles and got his tentative okay on things. It took a couple days, but they got it. With the Council's resources decimated, a few humans who could handle the kind of story that Buffy and Brian concocted would be an asset. Because there were times when the Council needed things that had been stolen and moved in trucks and hijacking the trucks would have been preferable to the brawls that had resulted from having a team get to them after they'd stopped. And while he was leery about accepting Angel's reassurance that he was the nominal head of the Council right now, after a few calls to some old acquaintances from his Council-lackey days proved the claim true. Giles and Buffy were the current heads, in charge of getting the Council back on its feet and in the demon slaying business again. So he approved her requests and sent her on her way. Perhaps she'd like to head up the Los Angeles office, he mused.

* * *

Dom and his friends took the bit about her being a slayer well, once she finally told them. It seemed that the illegal street racing world was aware and always on the look out. They'd heard the slayer myth, but believed her to be just that: a myth. Buffy proving herself as a slayer was equally easy. She did some feats of strength and aerial gymnastics and _bam!_ Instant acceptance of her abilities. And it explained the soldiers waiting on her quite nicely. It wasn't until Leon, Vince and Jesse left that she got apprehensive.

"Dom, we need to talk some more. Brian and I have something to tell you, then we have a plan. But you've gotta hear him out first, okay?"

Dom looked at her warily. Something about this whole conversation was off. She was treating him like he was going to explode at any moment. He nodded and sat back, lacing his fingers with hers.

"First, Dom, this is going to be really hard for you to accept. I... shit." Brian started pacing, not sure how to continue. He figured that the bandaid approach was best. "I was sent her undercover to find out if you're involved in the truck jackings."

"_WHAT_?!" Yup. There went Dom's temper. Buffy held him down, but it bothered her to do so, to make him hold in his instinctual reaction. "You knew?" he asked her, and she flinched slightly.

"I knew he was a cop. I didn't know why he was involved with you until we went shopping."

"If you knew he was a cop, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Because he's family. I figured I'd give him a chance to explain first, and he did. He's having a little identity crisis right now over this, you know. He's a cop, so he should be doing his job. But he thinks you're doing the wrong thing for all the right reasons and doesn't want to turn you in. So we came up with a compromise."

"You came- what? What do you mean you came up with a compromise?"

Buffy took a deep breath. "We tell the FBI, because they're in on it too, that the trucks marked for you to jack were the wrong ones. We tell them that the Council contracted you to get our own goods back and that our man would mark them for you. We say they had demon drivers, so it should have been fine for you to deal with them. But our man screwed up or screwed us, we're still trying to find out and it's an internal matter that we're dealing with, and you didn't ever open the trucks on our instruction, so you didn't know you had the wrong shipments."

"And money? How do I make what I need to get Mia out of here?"

"That's easy," Buffy said airily. "First, if Mia wants, she can come work for the Council. If she doesn't, that's fine too. You and your merry band of hijackers are in, though, if you take this out. You'll work for us. We'll pay you well, and it won't always be jackings like that, but it will be steady work with an adrenaline rush beyond belief. So what do you say, Dom."

"I have to talk to the guys."

"That's fine, but it can't wait forever."

The next day, Dom agreed.

* * *

Agent Bilkins showed up and introduced himself. Buffy shook his hand and gave him a witty quip that should have gotten the ball rolling, but it fell flat. She turned to her cousin.

"He reminds me of Agent K in Men in Black. You know, where he says," here she affected a truly horrible Tommy Lee Jones voice and said in a rather monotone way, "we at the FBI do not have a sense of humor that we are aware of."

Brian looked horrified, but Dom started chuckling. Brian's sergeant also laughed, though he looked disgusted to be sharing a sense of humor with Dominic Toretto of all people. The FBI agent glared at her, but she'd done what she set out to do; release some of the tension in the room. So she laid out her case for Dom and his friends. The Council would cover fifty percent of the loss the merchants felt, since their insurance would have covered it anyway. Dom would inspect any trucks they had cause to go after before moving them from wherever they were stopped, should they have the need to jack any other shipments of stolen goods. They would inform the local LEOs or the FBI of any effort in that vein in the future. She agreed to all of their demands. She told them that the Council was under new management, and it would be open to more agreeable negotiations in the future. Agent Bilkins was both shocked that the Council wasn't a hostile entity any longer, and that this little girl was actually offering the olive branch to the Agency. They wanted a good relationship with the Council, so he took hold of that branch with both hands.


	3. Go Speed Racer!

**Title:** Go Speed Racer!

**Author:** Constance Truggle

**Fandom:** Buffy/Fast and the Furious

**Rating:** FR13

**Pairing:** Brian/Mia, Dom/Buffy

**Summary:** Street racing is illegal and Buffy can't do anything that would put a bad face on the Council. But oh, how she wants to!

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Buffy or Fast and the Furious.

**Word Count:** 2642

**Author's Note:** This follows _It's a Small World After All_ and _Compromise_. And a big old thanks to **_hellbells_** for reading it over and catching the missing words and choppy sentences. Pretty sure this is the end of this series, too, so I hope you enjoyed the ride!

* * *

Faith, Dawn and Willow caught up with Buffy at the Toretto house a couple weeks after the whole FBI thing, and the blonde using the Council to get her honey firmly wearing a white hat again. It also smoothed the way for her cousin to stay fairly good with the gang. He'd have to prove himself, but trust issues were starting to get better. Buffy introduced her best friend, her sister and her sister slayer to Dom, Mia and the guys. Faith was checking out Vince, and Buffy just groaned. She figured Faith would get all hot and bothered over him. Leon tried hitting on Willow, and Buffy giggled as Willow blushed and stammered.

"Give it up, Leon. She's gay," Buffy called out. She knew the guy was just having fun, but felt she ought to warn him off before he made a fool out of himself. He was a real sweetheart, after all, and she wouldn't like to see him embarrassed. Then Jesse managed to embarrass Buffy, unintentional though it was. He was another one that would hurt himself before hurting someone else.

"So why don't you have a car, Buffy?" he asked. Dawn snorted and clapped a hand over her mouth while Willow giggled.

"Buffy can't drive," Dawn supplied.

"I can, too!" Buffy pouted. "It's not my fault that you don't like my driving."

"_Nobody_ likes your driving, Buffy! Xander won't even get into a car with you anymore."

"The car just doesn't do what I want it to do fast enough."

"Right, Buff," Dawn drawled, rather too sarcastically, Buffy thought.

"She might be right, yo!" Faith to the rescue! She seemed to be doing that a lot lately; at least for the blonde slayer. "Unless you have a car that responds instantly, slayer reflexes are too much. Normal cars can't handle us. 'Swhy I prefer bikes. They have better handling for slayers."

"And here I was, thinking it was because your ass looks hot in your leather pants," Willow put in. Faith gave her a lascivious grin.

"That too."

* * *

Dom and Brian took her to a deserted lot Brian used to use to practice her driving. Way back before she was called, her mom would take her to the UCLA lot and teach her, and she'd learned on a stick. Joyce always said that if you can drive stick, you can drive any vehicle there is. Brian's Supra got to be her practice car, and it was true. It responded a lot quicker to her commands, and Dom was riding shotgun and making sure she knew what she was doing. There was no pressure on her, nobody teasing her or holding on for dear life as if she were still back in Sunnydale, driving her mom's SUV during that whole band candy incident. Just her and Dom, with Brian watching from the sidelines as she put his car through its paces under Dom's direction.

Faith was right and Buffy was never happier to know that. Once she got settled into the Council offices in LA, she was taking the guys and going car shopping. Dom said he'd do the work to make it race-worthy if she wanted to try her hand at street racing, and she said she'd think about it. She and Faith had talked that first night, when they came to see her at Dom's, and the brunette had had a great idea. Buffy thought back to that, considering if it was even feasible before she approached Dom with it.

* * *

"You know, B. G-man was saying the Council owns a lot of land on the outskirts of the city. It's where the local office building is, and there's an old runway strip behind it. Apparently, the Council used to fly in to there instead of LAX. Like when they sent that wet works team after me," Faith's lips had twisted wryly there, and Buffy felt a surge of sympathy for the girls they had both been. One too righteous and certain in her belief that the world was only black and white to give anyone a real, fighting chance and the other too hurt by her past that she couldn't ask for help. They'd both grown for the better – and a bit of the worse for a while there – and it was nice to have someone who understood you now.

"Anyway, so they have that runway. A runway which is a hell of a lot longer than a quarter mile, I think. You'd have to make sure, of course, but it would make the racing scene a lot less illegal. Can't have the Council so blatantly breaking the law."

Buffy stared at Faith, incredulous. _Faith_ was lecturing her on _breaking the law_ and how not to? Had she stepped into the Twilight Zone? Crap... but wait. _Blatantly_?! Did Faith even know that word?

"Faith, did Giles put you up to this?" she asked carefully.

"'Course! G-man said if you're gonna hang out with criminals, than the least you could do would be to make it all legal so that the Council has a good face on it. And some other shit that I stopped listening to."

Buffy laughed. Now _that_ was the Faith she knew. But still, it was a valid point. She'd have to talk to Dom, though.

* * *

So now, here she was with the chance to bring it up and the words stuck in her throat. What if part of the draw was the illegality of it all? Yeah, she couldn't afford to associate with the illegal aspects, and neither could Dom and his crew once they started working for her. Well, they kinda could, since the FBI only knows his crew as independent contractors for the Council. But she enjoyed going down with them. Mia took her her first time, since Dom was stuck at the garage until the last minute, and the energy was like electricity in the air. It was amazing, and it got her blood pumping like only a real good fight could. She wanted to be a part of that, and she _couldn't_. Not unless it was real. And she couldn't change the law. But she _could_ give the racers a place to go where they could race and didn't have to worry about cops showing up. So could they do it without the thrill of getting caught?

She pulled the car to a stop and turned to Dom.

"You've been thinking mighty hard there, babe," he said.

"Yeah. Can we... I mean. Shit. I don't want to piss you or your friends off, but... dammit! Grab your car and Brian and follow me, alright?"

Dom looked at her for a long moment before he nodded his head once.

"Yeah, alright."

Once he was in his Mazda with Brian beside him, she took off, heading for the Council property.

* * *

Buffy pulled up in front of the building, intending on passing through it to see what sort of condition it was in while she was there. Dom pulled up right beside her, and he and Brian followed her in. The building was a mess. Giles had said they hadn't used it in a few years, not since Faith and the body snatching happened. The wards that had been placed around the property kept out demons and unsavory people, but not the ravages of disuse and nature. With a sigh, she texted Xander that she'd need him to oversee the refurbishing of the place before he left for England, if he didn't mind. He didn't, and she, Dom and Brian continued through. She found what would be the training room, too. It had some equipment, but it would all have to be updated for watchers and slayers to use. She found a smaller room that she would commandeer for her own training room slash office, though. Finally, Brian broke the silence. That surprised her. He usually had more patience than that. She'd expected Dom to crack first.

"Why are we here, Buffy?" Brian asked.

"It was brought to my attention that I am now a _respectable_ _businesswoman_." She snorted at the thought, but it was nevertheless true. "As such, I cannot tarnish the image of myself or the Council in any manner, especially not by participating in rituals that are against the law." She'd done that whole bit in a passable English accent that was clearly mocking someone. "Unfortunately, Giles was right. Which means I can't even _go_ to the races, much less _actually_ race. But Faith mentioned something, too. We have here, on this property, something that can solve all my problems. But I don't know if your crowd will go for it, so I figured I'd bring you here and see what you thought."

She pushed both Brian and Dom towards a window. They'd made it to the second floor in their inspecting, and these particular windows overlooked the airstrip. It was far enough away that the racing wouldn't really interfere with the goings on in the building – once they got it occupied – yet close enough that someone could be reached if something bad happened.

"See that runway? We don't use it anymore. It needs work, like the rest of the property, actually, but what do you think? Do you think the racing crowd could be persuaded to race here? It's on private property, so it wouldn't be illegal then, and then I could race. And the Council has ways to make things safer, too. Safety measures we could employ in case something bad happened, I mean."

Dom and Brian stood, staring at the expanse of hardtop. There were weeds and the like growing out of cracks, but Buffy was right; some elbow grease and a contractor to resurface it would fix that.

"So, if we pretty it up, do you think it would work? I mean, if we fix it, will they come?" Brian laughed at her reference, but he, too, looked to Dom. And Dom was looking thoughtful.

He passed his hand back and forth over his cheek, cupping his chin as he did so, staring out over the half-mile bit of road. It _would_ be perfect for it, if the racing crowd accepted that they wouldn't be illegal anymore. The adrenaline rush from out running the cops was a big factor in the racing scene, and he wasn't sure the rush of the race itself would be enough. But Dom also saw Buffy's side of it. She couldn't be part of that world if it was illegal. She had a measure of immunity for what she did and who she was, but that didn't extend to breaking laws like that one. He'd have to put it to Hector. He had a finger on the pulse of the racing world, more so than even Dominic Toretto did. Although, if Dom endorsed the idea, there would be few who would disagree, he was thinking. So he'd ask Hector and see what he thought, first.

* * *

Dom saw Hector at Harry's the next day and told him to come around the garage. He had something he wanted to talk to the other man about. So he did.

"I'm gonna cut right to the chase, here. There's a strip of straight asphalt that's over half a mile long, and it's on private property. The owner of this property said we could use this strip for race night every week, and I'm thinking it could be a good deal. What's your take, man?"

"How trustworthy is this person? Are they gonna back out of the deal once they get tired of the racing?" Hector asked.

"Nah, man. Said they'd sign a contract that Friday nights, the strip could be used for street racing, and that nothing would break that contract. They even said they'd make it in perpetuity, so long as other illegal activities weren't carried out on their property."

"Why?"

"Why? Because they can't afford to go to the races now, and they definitely can't afford to participate because of their job. It's pretty high profile in all the wrong circles, and _any_ illegal activities on their part could cause some pretty damn big problems." Hector nodded. It made sense to him.

"So if the racing occurs on private property, then it's all legal and they wouldn't have a problem showing up."

"Exactly."

"I think you got something here, Dom. And you know that wherever you go, everybody else is gonna follow. So we'll get the word out that we're having a change in venue. Do you know when we can start racing there?"

"Not yet. Gotta fix it up a bit, first. I'll let you know when it's done, then take you out there. Between the team and you, we'll be able to lead everyone else out there the first time."

"Sounds good, brah."

* * *

_**Two Months Later**_

Buffy pushed through the crowd of racers and speed bunnies and thrill seekers and attention whores, looking for Dom or Brian. She spotted Leon first, and he grinned at her as she hugged him. She felt two arms slide around her from behind even as that gravelly voice that made her knees weak spoke over her head.

"You tryin' to steal my girl, Leon?" Dom asked with a smile.

"Nah, man. But I don't mind coppin' a feel now and again."

Dom growled while Buffy laughed, knowing Leon was joking. Dom did, too, but he was a possessive prick and jokes like that brought out the Beer Bad, Fire Pretty side of him. Xander had chortled madly the first time she called Dom on it with that very phrase, and to her everlasting humiliation, had proceeded to explain the Cave Buffy experience.

"Looks like it's a hit, _chica_," Hector said, joining the small group. Brian and Mia followed, holding hands. Things had been rocky for a while after Dom and Mia learned Brian was a cop, but those two had finally worked out where they stood with each other. They were trying everything over, Mia learning just who Brian O'Conner really was, without the undercover role.

Buffy beamed up at Hector. "It is, isn't it!" She was happy. She wasn't racing yet as Dom didn't think she was ready – and she _knew_ she wasn't – but he was teaching her how to race and maintain her car. She leaned back more fully into him, lifting her arms up to curl around his neck. He nuzzled her, nipping at her ear and making her suddenly wish that the races were done and they had her loft to themselves for the night.

"Get a room, yo!" Faith hollered, sauntering up and dressed nearly identical to Buffy in leather and a tank top. The blonde knew they looked hot together, and with a saucy wink at Dom, she slipped from his arms and wrapped limpet-like around her sister-slayer.

"I'd rather have yours," Buffy purred. She was rewarded with Faith's eyes widening and a wicked grin appearing on the dark slayer's lips.

"I'm already in your bed tonight, B. What more could you want?"

Buffy swore she heard the guys' collective jaws dropping and couldn't help but laugh. All but Dom's, at least.

"Good thing she's sleeping in mine, then," he said, supremely unconcerned.

As she slipped back into her honey's arms, she pulled his head down and whispered into his ear just what would happen if he won that night. Needless to say, he won and Mia and Brian decided that it would be better for all involved if they slept at his place on race night from then on.


End file.
